Chapter 10: The Martial Arts Hall

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Lu Changfeng had also just arrived at the Moon Cold Peak. Naturally, he remained somewhat cautious. Although he detected no threat from Zhou Xuantong, the methods used in the cultivation world were endlessly deceptive, so prudence was still wise. Zhou Xuantong saw that Lu Changfeng had already closed his eyes to cultivate; he measured his steps carefully as he moved to the entrance of the cave dwelling, then sat cross-legged to begin his own practice.

His cultivation had reached the third stage of the Tongmai realm, and although he claimed he could reach the fourth stage within a month, there was undoubtedly some exaggeration in that. To cling tightly to the favor of his senior brother before him, he knew he had to work even harder.

The night passed without incident.

...

At dawn, Lu Changfeng awoke from cultivation. Feeling the abundant spiritual energy filling his body, he sighed inwardly. “Dao Yan Sect truly lives up to its reputation as the top sect in the Tianyuan Domain. The spiritual energy here is indeed rich.” “Far better than at the Lu family.”

He opened his eyes and casually glanced at Zhou Xuantong, who was still cultivating. Then, without much ceremony, he took out a spatial ring. As he infused it with spiritual energy—

A faint vibration rippled through the space.

Suddenly, several profound-grade spiritual artifacts materialized on the ground.

“Whoa!” Zhou Xuantong's eyes snapped open as he sensed the shift in spiritual power beside him, gasping in astonishment. “Profound-grade... spiritual artifacts! Three of them? Senior Brother… how generous!”

Lu Changfeng’s expression remained calm as he explained, “It’s just a customary gift for becoming a disciple.”

To others, profound-grade spiritual artifacts were treasures rarely encountered, and even one was precious. But to him, these were nothing special. After all, at his level of insight, even heavenly-grade spiritual artifacts were commonplace.

“Senior Brother, no wonder you are the direct disciple of the peak master!” Zhou Xuantong said with envy. “Truly enviable!”

Lu Changfeng said nothing more. After examining the artifacts in his hand, he stored them away.

Then, changing the subject, he said, “Take me to the Technique Hall.”

Though he had already reached the first stage of Tongmai, he still lacked suitable spiritual skills or divine arts. In his previous life, as the Sword Emperor of the Three Thousand Star Domain, he had no shortage of techniques, but the rank in that domain was so high that his starting point far exceeded that of any cultivator in the Tianyuan Domain’s Divine Repository. The spiritual skills in his mind were simply impossible to activate here.

“The Technique Hall?” Zhou Xuantong nodded slightly, his face full of admiration. “As a direct disciple of Moon Cold Peak, you can choose any spiritual skill from the Technique Hall at will!”

Though new disciples could select one spiritual skill from the Technique Hall, ordinary disciples could only access the lower levels and never touch more profound techniques. But direct disciples were different; they could pick freely from the entire hall.

With that, the two set off toward the Technique Hall.

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Located atop the main peak, the Technique Hall was a nine-story pagoda soaring into the clouds, shining with golden radiance. Around its body, faint array fluctuations guarded it. Birds instinctively flapped their wings and flew away from the area.

On the first floor, disciples came and went in a steady stream, their eyes sparkling with excitement.

“Senior Brother Lu! This is the Technique Hall!” Zhou Xuantong smiled as he explained, “It has nine floors in total!” “Every three floors, the spiritual skills undergo a qualitative leap!” “Floors one to three are open to ordinary disciples; four to six are core areas for each peak, accessible to direct disciples.” “Seven to nine floors are reserved for elders only.”

Lu Changfeng nodded slightly and said straightforwardly, “To the sixth floor.”

As Lu Changfeng moved forward, all the surrounding disciples fixed their gazes on him.

“Disciple of Moon Cold Peak? A genius who can activate the Nine-Star Constellation technique?”

“He looks alright, but his cultivation… that’s really weak!”

“You don’t know anything! His talent is heavenly, okay?”

Among their gazes were envy, jealousy, and even subtle hostility.

Lu Changfeng’s expression did not change. He reached the entrance to the Technique Hall.

A faint array force suddenly surged out with a “buzz!”

The surrounding disciples were shaken violently by the array’s power, staggering and falling to the ground in all directions.

Lu Changfeng’s body trembled as he stomped his right foot heavily. Spiritual energy surged through him, forcibly halting his backward retreat.

Zhou Xuantong seemed caught off guard but immediately activated a faint rune force, neutralizing the overwhelming power.

At the front of the Technique Hall, only the two of them remained standing.

Lu Changfeng raised an eyebrow slightly and glanced casually at Zhou Xuantong without saying anything more.

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He already knew.

Zhou Xuantong’s status as a core disciple was proof of his own abilities. He was certainly not as simple-minded as his appearance suggested.

Seeing Lu Changfeng look at him, Zhou Xuantong smiled shyly, then spoke, “Senior Brother Lu, be careful.” “This is the Technique Hall’s array!”

As his words fell—

“Are you the one who can activate the Nine-Star Constellation?” An aged voice echoed from inside the pagoda.

Lu Changfeng looked toward the source of the voice.

Inside the tower stood a casually dressed white-haired elder, his eyes bleary with intoxication. He held a wine gourd that emitted a fragrant scent of medicinal liquor.

“That’s the Technique Hall elder; he has a very peculiar temper,” Zhou Xuantong whispered into Lu Changfeng’s ear. “Senior Brother Lu, be sure not to offend him…” “He’s drunk most of the time, has a bad temper, and will curse you!”

In truth, Zhou Xuantong was somewhat worried. He knew Lu Changfeng’s temper. If a conflict broke out with the elder here, it wouldn’t end well.

Lu Changfeng bowed calmly. “Disciple Lu Changfeng greets the elder!”

He then opened his palm, revealing the unique mark of Moon Cold Peak.

“Heh heh… not bad!” The elder paused, then smiled brightly and waved his hand.

A wave of spiritual energy immediately entered the array before Lu Changfeng.

“Buzz—!”

In the next moment, the array abruptly vanished, and the elder’s figure blurred. When he reappeared, he stood before Lu Changfeng.

“Do not cause trouble in the Technique Hall, do not use spiritual power. If I catch you…” the elder warned.

Lu Changfeng nodded lightly, expression unchanged. “I understand.”

“…”

“Direct disciples may enter up to the sixth floor!” the elder said, waving his hand again as he returned to his reclining chair.

He then took a deep sip of wine and half-closed his eyes as if falling asleep.

Lu Changfeng bowed slightly before calmly heading toward the staircase.

Zhou Xuantong behind him exhaled in relief and hurried to keep up.